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The Author's Corner |
Solitary Eclectic Witchcraft
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Solitary Eclectic Witchcraft: TWPT: When and how did you first come into contact with Wicca and what were some of your initial feelings about this spiritual path? LP: I should explain first of all that I don’t
consider myself Wiccan at all – Pagan, definitely; witch, probably; but
definitely not Wiccan. I first discovered all three when I was doing some
spiritual searching after a big spiritual crisis as a teenager. I read some
books and some magazines and felt I’d come home. Here were the things I’d
thought and felt, written by other people who thought and felt them too! I was
so happy and relieved that it wasn’t just me, there was a name for what I was. LP: I was brought up in a Baptist ‘happy
clappy’ style Christian Church. Some aspects I liked and respected while
others, I struggled with. I tried to fit my instinctive beliefs, which I’d had
since childhood, into the framework of belief of the Church and when I realised
that they would never fit I had a big life crisis. However, I never had any
problems once I’d found the path that did fit my beliefs, merely a lot of
trouble finding it! LP: Wicca was the most obvious Pagan path, the
one I always came across first when researching Paganism. I looked into it but
it wasn’t quite right for me. I realised that my path lay more within basic
Paganism than Wicca. I do practise magic, so I suppose that makes me a witch
but very definitely of the eclectic variety and almost always solitary. The
things that drew me to Paganism were: respect of nature, responsibility for
self, taking personal honour and integrity seriously, tuning into the natural
‘flow’ of the universe and harnessing it for positive action, recognising and
honouring the deity within. LP: TWPT: Tell me about some of your first experiences in discovering the Witchcraft/Pagan community at large and did you have any preconceptions of what you might find when you started to reach out to others who were already on the path?
TWPT: When was it that writing became important to you and how did this begin to manifest itself in your life? TWPT: Your new book is called Solitary Eclectic Witchcraft and
was published by Capall Bann in the LP: I'd been doing reading and soul-searching for quite a few
years but nothing I read was exactly what I felt and most of it was very
ritual-based - nothing wrong with that, just not my path. I had also been
talking to a lot of people and found that many of those who chose not to be too
involved with the 'Pagan scene' or who didn't feel comfortable being involved
in it, were doing more of the type of thing that interested me - a more free,
unstructured magical practice. I realised that I wasn't the only one searching
for this particular path and so I decided to write about it, to write the book
I wanted to read when I was first searching, so that later people on the same
path could maybe profit from my experience. TWPT: In my first
question you pointed out that you were not Wiccan. For many seekers the
dividing line between Wicca and Witchcraft is more than a little blurred. In
your mind what are the differences between someone who calls themselves a
Wiccan and someone who calls themselves a Witch? LP: This is both the blessing and the curse of Paganism - it can
be as individual to each person as the people are themselves. But, because
there's no authority to make definitions, it also means there is lots of
confusion and anger - people feel they aren't doing things 'properly' or they
feel that someone they have met had misrepresented themselves or is not genuine
in some way, mainly because of the problems of definitions. Anyway, for me,
Wicca is a very specific, heavily ritualised and structured mystery religion
based on Gerald Gardner's practices which owe a lot to Masonic and High Magic
lore and myth. Witchcraft however can cover a huge multitude of practices -
anything that includes the practice of magic in some form. For me, the essence
of my Witchcraft/Paganism is self-knowledge, personal responsibility, honour,
seeking wholeness and happiness, commitment to environmental and ethical
issues, and trying to fit into the flow of the universe and seasons. TWPT: What is it that makes someone eclectic in regards to
Witchcraft? LP: I think 'eclectic' is a term indicating that you do not
follow a specific pre-laid-out path, such as Wicca. Unfortunately, in some
people's eyes, this indicates a sloppy thinker who follows a so-called 'fluffy
new age' path of using a bit of everything with no regard for provenance or
authenticity. However, it can be exactly the opposite, someone who refuses to
take anything for granted and researches everything carefully before using it,
someone who is set on finding the spirituality that is right for them at a most
basic level. Hopefully, I'm the latter! TWPT: Are there any
guidelines/boundaries for being eclectic? In other words is there a point when
someone becomes so eclectic that they leave Witchcraft behind and begin
practicing another path? LP: That's a good question and it's one without an agreed
answer. I know that some people have thought I'm not really a Witch because I
don't use ritual or follow the established Wheel of the Year. Again, this
highlights the problems with labels and definitions within Paganism and
Witchcraft which I hope to address in my next book. I think the only answer is
to follow your heart and soul and ignore the labels. Your spirituality is
no-one else's business. TWPT: When you started to write Solitary Eclectic Witchcraft
did you have an idea as to what you wanted to present to your readers to show
them the broad range of choices that face someone who takes on the name of
eclectic? LP: I really wanted to show an alternative to ritual and covens
and initiation. I wanted to show that simple individuals doing simple magic and
living close to the earth are as valid as more dramatic paths. I had met a lot
of people who felt no confidence in what they did as according to all the
current books they were doing it 'all wrong'. I wanted to show that lineage and
arguments about how long a tradition had been going and who had the power to
'authorise' another's practice, were all irrelevant. What was relevant was what
was inside the head, the heart and the soul. I wanted to re-emphasise the
intellectual, personal responsibility, environmental aspects of Witchcraft
which I feel have become rather lost. TWPT: How is your book arranged and what kind of order did you
use chapter wise for presenting your thoughts on being an eclectic Witch? LP: I arranged it to address the individual from the inside,
outwards, as this is how I believe a spiritual practice should begin. First you
should address yourself and make necessary changes, learn lessons, heal
yourself. Only then can you look outwards and learn further, heal, and make
magic. I know this isn't a very fashionable view today - lots of people I have
met have found the path yesterday and want to do advanced magic tomorrow and
there are many books which facilitate and even encourage that. I feel that is a
mistake. Magic should be the last step, not the first. Self-knowledge and
learning are more important in order to know where you are likely to go wrong,
to reflect on the ethical issues and potential repercussions of your actions,
to know your strengths and weaknesses. Therefore, the order my book is in is as
a workbook, to go through the appropriate stages in the appropriate order. A
toolkit, for helping you to find your own path. TWPT: Tell me about how it was that Capall Bann came to publish
Solitary Eclectic Witchcraft and what kind of relationship as an author that
you have with them? LP: Capall Bann are a specialist small press in this subject
area and are a committed family firm with a common sense and ethical approach.
We don't have to have agents, we deal with each other directly and have a
chance to build up a relationship of trust. I felt they would be a safe pair of
hands, and they also have a lot of great contacts in the Pagan community, so I
felt my book would reach a wide audience of people likely to be interested. TWPT: Is your book aimed at a certain level (beginner,
intermediate etc.) of practitioner? LP: Not really. Beginners can certainly use it to help them in
their original search and to help them define their path and start on their
journey of personal transformation. I had them at least partially in mind when
I wrote it. But, most experienced practitioners would probably agree that
periodically you have to reassess your faith (or sometimes it can reassess you
in the most dramatic ways!). Sometimes you choose to do it, sometimes you have
a spiritual crisis, sometimes your mundane life changes and throws up new
issues. If we don't change, we become stagnant, and I hope that my book can
also help in this kind of reassessment TWPT: How important is it for readers of your book to take the
time to work through the exercises that are included within each chapter? LP: It's up to them really, it depends on what they want to get
out of the book and how they learn best. Some people like doing exercises and
some people don't. Some people find it easier to do them with pencil and paper
and some people just think about them, even at a subconscious level. I wanted
to include some practical exercises and steps to take for those who want them,
but not too many as many people may prefer just to have thoughts and ideas
introduced to them and then to work with them as they want. TWPT: What kind of
feedback have you been getting from readers of your book so far? As an author
how important is the feedback from your readers and does it have any impact on
works that you might have in progress? LP: I've not had a huge amount of feedback which is a shame as I
love hearing what people think and would welcome correspondance with questions
and further thoughts - we all learn from each other and it shows me what people
are particularly concerned about and interested in. However, the feedback I have
had has all been positive and has been particularly from people who feel quite
isolated by the way they do things, even from other Pagans and Witches. Lots of
people are lacking in confidence in their instincts or feel they are boring, or
that what they do barely 'counts' as Paganism or Witchcraft, and it is these
people who seem to have felt particularly moved to respond to me. TWPT: In your book you talk a lot about understanding your
environment and attuning to it so that your practice of the craft will be
working with nature and not against it. Tell me about the current environment
that exists in the LP: I have found it very varied. I don't tend to proclaim my
beliefs but neither do I keep them secret if they come up. Lots of people have
been fine with a few exceptions of work colleagues occasionally. Festivals I
have been to have sometimes attracted protesters outside or letters in the
local press but usually these have been more than balanced by letters of
support. I have found that talking tends to dispel any bad feelings quite
quickly as it is usually based on ignorance. But I haven't noticed much change
in the last couple of decades apart from a perception of Witchcraft in the
general public being now based on Buffy instead of Samantha from Bewitched! TWPT: As an author what
are your views about the Internet and the immediacy that it has brought to communications
with just about anyone around the world who is also connected? Do you feel that
it has enhanced your ability to connect with those who read your books and what
are the benefits and drawbacks of this instant communication? LP: I think the Internet is great - it makes research so much
easier and knowledge easier to obtain. You can also find out about the lives of
people in other countries and cultures much more easily and should, in theory,
help dispel prejudice. Obviously, it has a downside to - there is a lot of
rubbish out there and it can be used to propagate hatred just as easily as
acceptance. Once again, the Internet is just a tool and can be used however the
hand which holds it dictates. TWPT: Do you take a break between your books or do you just
plow right ahead into the next project once the previous one has made it to the
printers? LP: Writing is something I need to do to express the ideas I
have. Sometimes I write books, sometimes stories, articles, fiction, non-fiction,
letters, journals. I write whatever I have the urge to write that day and I
often have several projects on the go at once. I can only write something if I
feel I have something genuine to say. TWPT: You briefly mentioned your next book in one of your answers,
could you give us a preview of what it is that you have in mind to write about?
LP: It is already finished and I'm hoping Capall Bann will also
publish it. It follows on from the subject matter in 'Solitary Eclectic
Witchcraft'. It discusses life as Pagan
or Witch in modern times and some of the dilemmas you can face, giving ideas
for living more truely with your beliefs and discussing areas which can give
problems. I hope it will give food for thought for those who really want to
change their life and lifestyles in accordance with their beliefs. The title
should be 'Thoughtful Pagan Living' which is what it hopefully will help
readers to achieve. TWPT: I know that authors in the states sometimes do lectures
or make appearances at festivals in a teaching capacity to promote their books.
Is that something that you do to in the LP: I have done in the past but the birth of my children, who
are both still quite small, has restricted me in what I can take on. Hopefully
when they are more able to do without me for a day, I will give talks again, if
invited! TWPT: Looking back on the writing of Solitary Eclectic
Witchcraft were there some things that writing the book either taught you or
brought back to your conscious mind? Any final thoughts you’d like to share
with the readers of TWPT on either side of the pond? LP: Sometimes I look back over the book and think 'Oops, I'm not
doing that at the moment!' and it jolts me to realise how easy it is to let
your own standards slip and principles to go by the wayside when life gets in
the way. It did help me enormously to write the book as it clarified many
things which had only been semi-conscious before. I think a final thought I'd like to share would be this:
always think about things. Don't just do what is expected or what everyone else
is doing. Think hard about whether things are what you want to do and believe
are right. Be honest in thought and deed and honourable in your dealings with
other people. There's enough nastiness in the world, don't add any more to it!
Blessings to everyone. TWPT: Thanks Liz for taking the time out of your schedule to talk to me and share your ideas with the readers of The Wiccan/Pagan Times and I wish you the best of luck with your current book and the next one that you have lined up. Blessings. |